This invention relates generally to devices with wheels or other rotating parts, including in-line skates, bicycles and rotating toys and sports equipment. More particularly, this invention pertains to lighting assemblies associated with the rotating parts and which increase safety and provide visual aesthetic effects.
The use of in-line roller skates has recently become popular as a means of outdoor recreation and sport. The use of sidewalks and streets by such skaters during twilight and evening hours has brought with it a potential danger of collision with other traffic to whom the skaters are at best semivisible. It can be extremely difficult for motorists, pedestrians and other skaters to quickly locate moving skaters in the darkness.
In-line skates are largely ridden on sweets and sidewalks. The wheels are subjected to very rough treatment because of hitting holes, joints and other irregularities in the skating surfaces. Furthermore, skaters jump over objects, subjecting the wheels to high impact forces. In addition, it is common for skaters to turn sharp corners by riding at an angle on the sidewalls of the wheels. Thus, both the periphery and the sides of the wheels are subjected to severe stresses which limit wheel life.
Currently available lights for skating in darkness include battery powered blinking red light modules designed to be attached to the clothing of the skater. Such devices can generally be seen from only one direction. In addition, such lights may not be always available for night skating because of forgetfulness, dead batteries, and other reasons.
An in-line skate lighting system is needed which lights automatically when the skate is used, not requiring activation of a manual switch or repetitive battery replacement. The problem of dead or depleted batteries needs to be solved.
Similarly, bicycles require lighting systems to increase their visibility in darkness. While reflectors are commonly attached to bicycle wheels for reflecting light from automobile headlamps, reflectors do not provide needed visibility unless a light source is directed at them.
Immovably mounted bicycle lights powered by a wheel driven generator are well known.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,383,244 of Knauff discloses a lighting system for the wheels of a conventional roller skate. The system utilizes a flasher circuit and conventional ON-OFF switch to provide power from a battery to several light emitting diodes. The entire circuit is enclosed within an annular housing which is cemented to the outside of the skate wheel in cantilever fashion. This arrangement ignores both the normal wear of the wheel and the frequent riding on the wheel edge. Both of these factors will result in destructive frictional wear to the housing. The enhanced physical abuse typically placed on in-line skates precludes the application of such a lighting system to in-line skates. Furthermore, unlike the conventional roller skate wheel of Knauff, the axle of an in-line skate wheel is attached to the skate frame on both sides of the wheel, not providing enough room for inclusion of the Knauff device. In addition, the lighting device of Knauff requires manually turning on a switch on each of the eight wheels before skating, and turning off each switch when skating is halted. Otherwise, the lights will remain on when not skating, depleting the batteries. Failure to remember to turn off the switches will virtually assure the premature depletion of the batteries and need for expensive replacement and multiple housing disassembly.